NFL: Asking Combine Participant If He Likes Men Was ‘Completely Inappropriate’

It's unclear if the NFL will penalize the team that posed the question to Derrius Guice.

LSU running back Derrius Guice runs the 40-yard dash during the 2018 NFL Combine. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
LSU running back Derrius Guice runs the 40-yard dash during the 2018 NFL Combine. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

After an incoming rookie was asked about his sexual preference by a team during an interview at the Scouting Combine, the NFL is telling the league that kind of conduct will not be tolerated.

While speaking on SiriusXM radio yesterday, running back Derrius Guice revealed a team at the Combine asked if he likes men. Today, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy denounced the question as “completely inappropriate” and said it was “wholly contrary to league workplace policies.”

In an email to ProFootballTalk, McCarthy also indicated teams are given an annual reminder about the types of queries that are appropriate. According to another PFT source, that reminder comes in the form of a memo that lists questions that should not be asked.

Prohibited questions reportedly include:
Do you like women or men?
Are you gay or straight?
Do you have any children/dependents and, if yes, who has primary caretaking responsibilities?
Did you marry your child’s mother and, if not, why not?

With regard to the specific question that was posed to Guice, McCarthy also told PFT: “We are looking into the matter.”

As to whether the league actually disciplines the as-yet unidentified team that was questioning Guice remains to be seen.

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